Games

RockPaperShotgun has posted a memorial to the STALKER series of games, citing their importance to the FPS genre, their successful depiction of atmosphere and place, and their impressive post-apocalyptic feel (noting how much more oppressive and darker the series' vision is than the recent Fallout games). It's an interesting read, as are the comments for those wondering if they should try out the games. My own experience with STALKER begins and ends - so far - with Shadows of Chernobyl , the first game in the series. Released in 2007 after a lengthy development period, the game was noted for being heavily broken on release, with numerous patches and fan-mods required to bring the game to an acceptable level of stability. Once you got over that hurdle, the game was remarkable. Set in the Zone of Alienation surrounding the Chernobyl ruins, the game depicted a world populated by people and factions vying for their own interests, as well as thousands of animals and mutants who w...

GSC Game World, the developers of the STALKER series of computer games, have been shut down by the owner of the company, according to early reports. The STALKER series, comprising Shadows of Chernobyl , Clear Sky , Call of Pripyat and the in-development STALKER 2 , has been a big hit on PC since the release of the first game in 2007. The series has sold over 4 million copies worldwide and been held up as an example of the continued potential success of PC-only games in the console-dominated marketplace. The series is set in the near future when a second explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear reactor has resulted in a series of reality-warping anomalies opening in the surrounding area. Various factions are contesting control of these anomalies, which they hope to exploit for personal gain. No firm reason has been given for the shutting down of the company, although the failure of GSC to win interest for a console version of the series has been cited as a possible reason. Possible politi...